Mission Arlington®’s director, Tillie Burgin, compares helping people to fixing their car tires. The four tires are spiritual, emotional, physical, and intellectual needs. If one tire is low, the car won’t go.

For this reason, in addition to the Bible Studies, food, clothing, counseling and other resources Mission Arlington® provides, this summer, they also partnered with AISD to host “Toddler Time,” a reading program for preschool children.

Mission Arlington® provided a space and publicized the event. Two AISD employees came each Saturday for 6 weeks with songs, books, crafts and snacks. Each week, the children learned a different color and shape, and the parents saw good examples of how to read with their children. They heard tips on how to keep reading alive in their homes and how early reading leads to future success.

“Toddler Time” is also offered at AISD elementary schools during the year with great success. However, being able to host the program in the apartments where the people live did have advantages. Some families attended who lacked transportation to their local school. One rainy Saturday, when normally no one would have wanted to leave the house, the parents didn’t mind walking across the courtyard to read and make a craft with their children.

Countless studies have shown children who attend programs like “Toddler Time” have a significant head start. Mission Arlington® is thrilled to be able to partner with AISD to make this asset more accessible to the families in the community.